Virtuous Shirking and Social Distance: Concept Measurement in the Context of Militarized Response to Nonviolent Revolution

Abstract

As a concept-measurement exercise, this article explores social distance in the context of confrontations between soldiers and pro-democracy protesters. While existing work has applied this concept in terms of structural, mostly static factors, this article explores the use of potential dynamic measures for this concept. To show these situational factors at work and highlight their potential contribution as new measures for social distance, this article uses a research design that holds relatively constant the traditional, structural measures while varying the social-distance outcome experienced in each campaign. The cases employed are East Germany 1989, Romania 1989, and South Korea 1980. The article particularly focuses on the protest tactics of fraternization and messaging, as well as regime tactics affecting opportunities for each, confirming both as useful additional measures of the concept of social distance. It also nominates other potential measures based on evidence that emerges inductively in the case reviews.